Discover how remote work helped save a woman’s life when her husband recognized stroke symptoms and acted quickly. Learn the signs and importance of rapid response.
It is not every day that a woman is saved by remote work. I mean literally, her life was saved by remote work. That’s because her husband was working remotely when he intervened and saved her life.
I am so glad she is here today to tell me what happened, and we can all learn from her experience. Here's the story:
It was Thursday, December 1st, and the semester was winding down. I was getting finals scheduled, but I grabbed some time in the morning to walk with my friend. It is good to have an outdoor snowy walk! We enjoyed our time, and I said my goodbyes.
She was scheduled to take her daughter to the train station at 8:45 am. She drove to the Lehi train station, which is about a 15-minute drive from her house. Her daughter told me later that things weren’t quite right with her. My friend was acting funny, but her daughter could not put her finger on it.
She returned home (another 15 minutes) and started making breakfast for her husband. The usual eggs and toast breakfast. She cooked the eggs and toast, but she forgot to take the fry pan off the burner. The kitchen filled with smoke.
Her husband smelled the odor, came downstairs from his workstation, and noticed there was something wrong. He asked her how she felt. She tried to speak but her words came out slurred and garbled. He looked straight at her face and KNEW the signs. He told her immediately “We are going to the hospital! You are having a stroke!” She argued with him. She was NOT having a stroke. He insisted, and hurriedly got her into the car. They raced to the nearest hospital in American Fork. They rushed into the emergency room! The stroke was confirmed, and the emergency doctors immediately put her on medication to fight the stroke, then put her in an ambulance. The nearest stroke unit is in Provo. The ambulance raced down to Utah Valley Hospital.
Minutes were ticking, but it was only 60-75 minutes after her stroke signs appeared. At UVH, they continued her medication and broke up the clot. It worked! She was doing well! She was in the hospital for two days and came home on Saturday.
She texted me the next day, Friday, December 2nd, and said she probably would not be walking with me during December because she had a stroke! What? I was amazed. There were no problems during our hour-long walk, and nothing seemed wrong. It started after she left to take her daughter to the train.
How did her husband KNOW she was having a stroke? He knew the signs and he acted quickly. She had 3 out of 5 initial signs of stroke. What are those signs?
She had a setback the next week, but it was not dangerous, and no mini stroke occurred. She is now doing well and is walking again with her family. She did a bit of speech therapy for her “S” sounds, but that was the only therapy she needed to correct her stroke deficit. It may be a month or so before I get to walk with her again, but I am grateful she is still here.
And it is all because her husband was home, working remotely, and saved her life.
